After a smashing introduction to Vought's wolves in sheep's clothing in season 1, season 2 of The Boys seems to indicate that this superheroes-gone-bad TV series is only going to get better and better.
The overall story arc of season 2 of the Amazon Prime series was fantastic, and every character in the show had their own role to play in the greater storyline. However, some characters got better individual arcs and development than others. So with that in mind, which major characters in The Boys had a great second season, and who's season 2 storylines could have been a lot better?
Fitting: The Deep
While none of The Seven really live up to the expectations that people might have for superheroes, The Deep actually managed to distinguish himself as one of the worst people in the series right off the bat.
So, seeing him get his comeuppance and become the washed up loser that he really deserves to be was a satisfying turn of events in the second season of the series, and here's hoping he stays on the bottom of the totem pole.
Deserved Better: The Female
Kimiko Miyashiro is equal parts scary and sympathetic in season 1, but season 2 really decided to put the Female through the wringer.
It was heartwarming to see her reunite with her brother, and it was interesting to see the softest side of Kimiko. So then, it was exceptionally brutal to see the one person that Kimiko loved the most ripped away from her by a brutal white supremacist monster.
Fitting: Hughie Campbell
Given that Hughie is a pretty sweet and mundane guy who finds himself caught up in the world of exceptionally dangerous supes, it's quite impressive that he's even managed to survive for this long.
But, Hughie has learned to hold his own, and in this season it finally felt like he was more than just Butcher's sidekick. Seeing Hughie grow into himself and decide who he wants to be was great.
Deserved Better: Lamplighter
Lamplighter was just barely introduced in the first season of The Boys, which established him as a now-retired member of The Seven who was also a child murderer.
His character arc in season 2 revealed that not everything was as it seemed, and that although he was still working for Vought in their secret supe development hospital, he wasn't the monster that most people thought he was. However, his death felt incredibly premature and cut off his character evolution just when it was at it's most interesting.
Fitting: Starlight
While it honestly wasn't thrilling to see Starlight edge a little bit closer to the dark side in season 2 of The Boys, that is really the only negative aspect of her character story.
Seeing Starlight grow even more into her own and become the kind of hero that she wants to be in spite of Vought was great, and it was even better to see her develop a relationship with Butcher and the Boys.
Deserved Better: Queen Maeve
Aside from the fact that Queen Maeve finally decide to rebel against Homelander and pitched in to kick Stormfront's Nazi ass, for the most part her story in season 2 was wildly disappointing and intentionally offensive.
Once her non-heterosexual status was revealed to the world, she became Vought's poster child of LGBTQ representation, except that representation was distilled to it's most marketable and heartless form.
Fitting: Homelander
While taking down or even remotely damaging Homelander is going to be no easy task, the fact that this indestructible and downright evil dude finally suffered a little after doing nothing but win for most of his life was incredibly satisfying to watch.
And after he abducted Ryan and tried to make him into little white-is-Reich Jr., it was even more thrilling to see that literally blow up in his face.
Deserved Better: Billy Butcher
Although Billy Butcher seems to have been obsessed with and truly in love with his supposedly deceased wife Becca, when he finally got her back, he was not his best self.
He was manipulative towards her and all of his friends for most of the season, and tragically when he finally came to that realization and tried to be better, he had to watch Becca die for real.
Fitting: Stormfront
Stormfront might be the most evil supe to ever evil, credit where credit is due, she is excellent at being a manipulative witch. At the start, she totally won over the public, and it seemed like her white supremacist dreams might actually come true.
However, she overplayed her hand, got outed as a literal Nazi, and then was nearly destroyed by the little boy that she thought was the great hope of the white race.
Deserved Better: Becca Butcher
To be honest, The Boys has a tendency to live up to it's title in the sense that it's female characters haven't gotten the best treatment thus far.
While season 2 was an improvement over season 1, Becca Butcher's character arc (or lack thereof) demonstrated that their women problems are far from solved. After being fake-fridged for Billy's character in season 1, she was actually fridged for Billy and Ryan's characters in season 2.